Chapter 2 – The Destination

After the kidnapping of his Pikachu, Ash was extremely depressed as he walked back to the Pokémon Center. However, thanks to the Genesect's coloration and visible "R" symbol, the gang knew just who to ask for more information. But before interrogation could be done, Serena and Bonnie had other things in mind.

Serena yelled, "Ash!"

"Clemont!" shouted the eager Bonnie.

"Yeah?" asked Ash.

"What's up?" wondered Clemont.

Serena answered, "Bonnie and I are going to some of the Lumiose City shops tonight to buy supplies. Let's go Bonnie!" With saying that, the two of them ran off.

"Alright, have a good time!" Ash said as he waved his hand.

"Don't go for too long!" said Clemont worriedly.

Bonnie replied, "Don't worry, we'll be back!" After only a few seconds, the girls had disappeared into the street crowd.

Clemont knew it was time for action. "Okay Ash, now that they're gone, let's go find Team Rocket!"

"Right!" said Ash in return.

So the two went back to the place where Team Rocket's balloon had fallen, and much to their surprise, the three were still there. Jessie, James, and Meowth were all wailing in sadness and could be heard from a few street blocks away.

James sobbed, "No…my employment in Team Rocket is over for good…"

Jessie was very angry about being released from Team Rocket. "After so long! Why did the boss do this to us!"

Meowth cried, "Capturing Pikachu for the boss was all the three of us ever lived for….."

After wiping off their tears, the three lowered their heads in a sigh.

As soon as they looked down, Ash blared, "Team Rocket!"

The trio froze in shock as they were surrounded on both sides by Ash and Clemont. Ash started to become uncontrollably furious.

Ash: "What did you do with my Pikachu?!"

Jessie and James screamed in terror. "Aaah!"

"We don't know anything, I swear!" Meowth honestly replied. "We're not even a part of Team Rocket anymore!"

Then Ash yelled in their faces, "Why can't you guys just do something good for once?!"

"Ash!" said Clemont, trying to control Ash. "Come on, Ash, calm down!"

"Oh, sorry about that…." said a sorry Ash.

Clemont was now determined to speak up. "All right you three, listen up. We need to find Ash's Pikachu, so do you have anything that we can use to find him?"

The three had an unfortunate reply. "We had something…" Jessie said.

"Until that Genesect ruined it!" said a maddened James.

Meowth held it in his paws. "Here it is."

It was a circular device with a screen to display the location of the canister and its tracker. Unfortunately for them, the device was shattered to bits.

Jessie went into more detail. "We wanted to know where Pikachu was at all times."

"So we implemented a tracking system," said James.

"But now we don't have it!" said Meowth frantically.

Then Clemont smartly responded, "Not so fast! This machine was destroyed and it was the only thing that could find Pikachu. But with the power of science, I can fix the device!"

"Amazing!" exclaimed Ash in awe.

"I know, right?" Clemont said with a smile. "But this one won't be so easy. I'll have to analyze every bit of dust to piece the device together. It will be a few hours."

"Aww man!" said the somewhat hurried Ash. "But I'll be able to wait."

After eating dinner, Ash decided to call his mom at the Pokémon Center. She needed to be informed about what had happened.

"Mom!" said Ash on the videophone.

"Hi Ash!" said Delia, who was always happy to be Ash's mom. "How's it going in the Kalos region?"

Ash said, "It's going great, but there's some bad news I have to tell you…"

"What is it Ash?" asked Delia. "And where's Pikachu?"

Ash's head lowered slowly.

"… Pikachu was taken away from me by a Team Rocket Pokémon," said Ash solemnly.

"Oh no!" Delia cried. "So what are you going to do now?"

"I have to get Pikachu back!" Ash responded in determination. "Once the tracker is fixed, I'll go to wherever I have to and find my buddy! He's my best friend, and I'll do anything to save him!"

Despite their distance, Delia believed that Ash could do anything. "Ash, I wish you the best of luck in finding Pikachu! Go and get him!"

"I will!" replied Ash before hanging up.

A few minutes later, Serena and Bonnie came back with a great number of bags.

"We're back!" said Bonnie happily.

Serena was delighted to share their shopping experiences. "We a bought a bunch of clothes, water, food supply, and even Pokémon themed costumes for our journey! We even bought you cookies to cheer you up!" After this, Serena handed Ash a cookie, and he gladly accepted.

With a bite of the cookie, Ash had a grin on his face. "Wow, thanks Serena!"

"You're welcome!" Serena responded, happy to know that she made Ash better.

"But there's something I have to tell you two," Ash said to the girls in a serious manner. "Right after we wake up, we're heading out to wherever Pikachu is at? Deal?"

Serena and Bonnie complied eagerly. "Deal!" they both exclaimed.

A few hours past, and Serena and Bonnie were already in bed. Finally, just before midnight, Clemont finished the tracker and showed Ash.

"Ta-da!" Clemont said proudly. "It's finally complete!"

"Incredible!" said Ash in amazement.

Clemont worked hard, but he wasn't even tired once he got finished. "Yeah, and now that I know how to make tracking devices, I can make them when we need to in the future! (pointing at screen) It seems that Pikachu has already made it to his destination. The question is, where is this place?"

Ash looked at the map, scanning surrounding cities while zooming in and out. He then came to a conclusion as text started to appear on the map.

"No way!" Ash said in surprise. "They took Pikachu in an isolated mountain range in the Ice Path! That's all the way in Johto!"

"Now let's see, the closest major city to it is Blackthorn City," said Clemont, ready for adventure. "We'll have to fly to the airport there! I'll hurry and get the four of us plane tickets!"

"Right!" said Ash. "Now I need to go talk to Professor Oak; I can't save Pikachu with just Froakie and Fletchling!"

It was already late in the night, so when Ash called Professor Oak, he was exhausted and very drowsy. Misty also happened to be staying the night with Tracey, so they both got up as well when they found out it was Ash.

Prof. Oak who was still clearing his eyes, looked tiredly at the screen. "Who is this?" he asked.

Ash, on the other hand, wasn't that tired at all. "It's me Ash! Hi Professor Oak!"

"Why did you call me so late?" wondered Professor Oak. "And where's Pikachu?"

Ash said, "See, that's the thing. Pikachu was taken from me by a Team Rocket Genesect. Now I have to go to Johto to save him."

"Oh man, this is terrible news," said the professor as he turned to leave. "Tracey, Misty, come quick!"

Misty's eyes beamed. "Hi Ash! Long time no see!"

Tracey was there too. "How's it going, Ash?"

"Well you see, I lost my Pikachu to a Team Rocket Pokémon," Ash explained. "It wasn't Jessie and James, it was a legendary Pokémon!"

Tracey was marveled at the fact. "A legendary Pokémon!?"

"Oh no!" Misty worriedly said. "What are you going to do?"

"I'll be heading to Blackthorn City and then I'll venture off to wherever Pikachu was taken," said Ash.

Tracey was willing to help his old travelling partner. "In that case, I'd like to help you out, too. Professor Oak may not have me for a while, but it was you who helped me get to know him in the first place! I'll do anything to help!"

Misty wanted to make the most of her time to help Ash. "Yeah, me too!" Misty said. "My sisters are at the gym right now so I was able to hang out with Tracey in Pallet Town. Using this chance, I'll join in as well!"

Prof. Oak finally came back after putting on his coat. "Ok Ash, so what Pokémon did you need for your journey?"

Ash was confident in choosing his team. "Let's see…I'll definitely need Charizard since he is my strongest. I'll need his fire and flying skills to navigate through the Ice Path. I'll also need Krookodile, Quilava, and Infernape for land support. Finally, I'll take Oshawott and Glalie since Oshawott can swim and Glalie can handle the cold weather."

Prof. Oak repeated, "Ok, so you want Charizard, Krookodile, Quilava, Infernape, Oshawott, and Glalie in exchange for your Froakie and Fletchling. That's a big team for one trip!"

Ash assured him it was well worth it. "I know. But to save Pikachu, I have to give it everything I have!

"Okay then," the professor said. "The Poké Balls are coming your way!"

"Thanks, Professor Oak!" Ash gratefully said. "You're the best!"

Professor Oak, though sleepy to be up so late, was glad to know he could be counted on. "No problem, Ash. Good luck on finding Pikachu! Call me if you need any of your others!"

After that, everyone was asleep, even Ash. The next morning, the gang had to rush to get ready because of their early flight and that Alexa was coming to take them to the airport. When the trainers were just about to enter the plane, Alexa gave her goodbyes.

"I'll see you guys later!" Alexa said hopefully. "Good luck, Ash! You can do it!"

"Thanks Alexa!" Ash replied. "We'll get Pikachu back for sure!"

"Wait!" said a voice coming in the distance.

"Dad?" pondered Clemont.

"Daddy!" Bonnie screamed.

Clemont's dad came just in time to give them a hug before they left. "I just wanted to say goodbye to you guys before you leave. I hope you two stay safe!"

"Wait, how'd you know we were going to Johto?" Clemont wondered.

His dad replied, "I too saw the saw Genesect that took Pikachu. I believe you guys should go, as there is much more behind this then Pokémon theft. Both Pikachu and the world could be in great danger!

"Thanks, Dad," Bonnie said cheerfully. "I love you!"

Clemont knew that Bonnie was still very young and that he would have to take extra responsibility for her. Despite this, he was still pumped for the adventure.

"Yeah thanks!" he said to his father. "Don't worry, we'll be back!"

"Ok, goodbye!" their dad sad confidently to his children.

At last, the plane was just about to leave. "Bye!" Ash, Serena, Bonnie, and Clemont said in return.

Ash and his friends were finally in flight. In a matter of minutes, the plane was already high in the sky.

To be continued...